The example embodiments described below relate generally to power saving techniques for multi-core processors.
Server farms using high-end processors can place large demands on power and cooling resources. Server system control facilities monitor power consumption and in a dynamic mode switch processors between different performance states to conserve power.
Further, mobile devices are generally battery powered and require sophisticated power control techniques to extend battery life.
Software techniques such as “core parking” used by Microsoft® operating systems consolidate processing onto the fewest possible processor cores and suspend inactive processor cores thereby reducing the power consumed by the multi-core processor.
In existing multi-core processors a voltage supply and multiple cores are integrated onto a single or multiple integrated circuits (ICs). Independent core voltage (VCC) planes are implemented for each of the multiple cores and the same voltage is supplied to each voltage plane.